We Need to Talk About Kevin

A Novel

By: Lionel Shriver

Narrated by: Coleen Marlo

Eva never really wanted to be a mother - and certainly not the mother of a boy who ends up murdering seven of his fellow high school students, a cafeteria worker, and a much-adored teacher who tried to befriend him, all two days before his 16th birthday. Now, two years later, it is time for her to come to terms with marriage, career, family, parenthood, and Kevin’s horrific rampage, in a series of startlingly direct correspondences with her estranged husband, Franklin. Uneasy with the sacrifices and social demotion of motherhood from the start, Eva fears that her alarming dislike for her own son may be responsible for driving him so nihilistically off the rails.

©2003 Lionel Shriver (P)2012 HarperCollinsPublishers

Critic reviews

“Shriver handles this material, with its potential for cheap sentiment and soap opera plot, with rare skill and sense.” ( Newark Star Ledger)

“A slow, magnetic descent into hell that is as fascinating as it is disturbing.” ( Cleveland Plain Dealer)

“Powerful [and] harrowing.” ( Entertainment Weekly)

Stick with it

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

After the first hour or so, i had just about given up on this one, but i'm glad i didn't! I saw the other good reviews and thought it must get better and better it did get! An exciting story of a mother and her son. Is it nature or nurture that develops children's personalities? Stick with it!

Compelling Shocking Amazing

I will never forget this book. Ever. I had no idea what I was getting into other than a story of a mother struggling to come to grips with her son becoming a murderer, but I was horrified, enthralled, totally sucked in even though it was psychologically painful and surprising and long. I struggled to turn it on after a difficult day, because it took something from me each time, but I could never stay away for long. I don't think this is the story of every high school shooter, but I do think it's a compelling story of one fictional boy who is disturbed beyond belief, with an exceptional writer to tell it thoroughly, engagingly. Plus, the reader was totally in character and pitch-perfect from start to finish. Toward the end, I was obsessed with finishing it—listened voraciously—like I would gulp down shots trying to finish the bottle regardless of the consequences, the hangover after. I feel the hangover of finishing this. And it was worth it.

Amazing! Stick with it.

The first few hours are painfully slow. The language is flowery and verbose, and at times description heavy and self indulgent. Get over it. The reward is an indepth look at one of the most chilling horror villains you will ever read, and an engrossing tale of the collapse of the American family. Knowing the ending up front makes the conclusion devastatingly effective. Every anecdote is haunting as you are lead to an inescapable climax.

Thought Provoking

Good reader. The story line was excellent.
I do wish the author had left out the animal abuse, the book would have been better with out it.
The mixture of fact and fiction was flawless.
I would NOT recommend this book to any pregnant woman---not joking!

This book will stay with you!

A very interesting way to tell a story, and the narrator does a fantastic job. This is a very disturbing tale about a family gone terribly wrong. All told from the mother's perspective in the form of letters to the father, it gets more and more addictive the further it gets along. Part cautionary tale and part mystery, the story of Kevin is heartbreaking and chilling. I couldn't get my mind off this book days after I finished listening! I watched the movie a couple of days after and I believe they did a very good job at telling the story; like another reviewer, I would recommend reading/listening first and then watching the film.

Excellent

I did this backwards in the sense I saw the movie prior to reading the book. I wasn't aware there was a book until after I finished the film, which I had very much enjoyed. I immediately purchased the book and started listening to it the day after seeing the film. I have since listened to it twice. I find the story fascinating, the characters easy to understand while also vastly different from myself, and explored my own wild fears of being a mother who wouldn't bond with her child. What I found I also enjoyed was the performance. The narrator gave the story a voice that I hadn't thought of before, which in itself can help you capture a different perspective. I have recommended this book to anyone who works with children as I do.

Blew me away....

Any additional comments?

Wasn't really sure what to expect but I was blown away. Complex, deep characters, great story. It was a surprisingly easy listen despite the grave subject matter. I didn't want it to end!

Unique, chilling, amazing book

Wow! Incredible book! The story is unique, chilling, and emotional. There are twists that I couldn't predict until much later, and the characters are compelling. This was definitely a page-turner - probably the most compelling book I've read in 5 years. I couldn't put it down!

interesting book

I had no idea what this was about but it turned out to be an interesting subject matter. Pretty creepy insight on these type kids...

Jordan Peterson recommended this book

Great reading by narrator. Captivating the whole time. Heavy, very heavy story. Follow up or lead up with something light.